Field Sous Chef

Upper Crust Food Service; Bloomington (IN); On-site; USD 48,000 - 62,000; Full time

Job summary

Upper Crust Food Service is seeking a Field Sous Chef — Greek Life to cover every house on campus, stepping in for chef absences, supporting big events, and learning every kitchen inside and out.

This campus-based, non-exempt role offers rapid ownership potential, requires culinary degree or equivalent, 3+ years in a professional kitchen with Sous Chef experience, and flexibility to work mornings, evenings, and weekends.

Qualifications

• Culinary degree or equivalent professional kitchen experience.
• 3+ years in a professional kitchen, including at least 1 year at the Sous Chef level.
• ServSafe certification, or ability to obtain within 60 days of employment.
• Flexibility to work across multiple kitchens on short notice, including early mornings, evenings, and occasional weekends.
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to integrate quickly into established teams.
• High-volume residential, hospitality, or institutional experience a plus.

Responsibilities

• Take daily assignments from the Area Manager or Ops Coordinator and lead service wherever needed.
• Execute the house’s planned menu to standard when covering an absent Chef, managing prep, station setup, food safety, and day-of logistics.
• Rotate across all houses on campus, learning each kitchen’s equipment, inventory, vendors, and service cadence.
• Provide pre-service prep support at high-volume houses on coverage-light days.
• Support new-house onboarding and execute special events, including philanthropies, recruitment events, and formal dinners.
• Complete structured shadow time with senior chefs and participate in semi-annual development reviews.
• Build a portfolio of menu concepts, costed recipes, and service plans toward independent menu ownership.

Skills

Culinary skills

Team leadership

Food safety

Education

Culinary degree or equivalent professional kitchen experience

Job description

_ Field Sous Chef — Greek Life _

Campus-Based | Non-Exempt

The Role

At Upper Crust Food Service we believe great food does more than fill plates, it creates connection, strengthens communities, and transforms everyday experiences. Across college campuses, K-12 schools, camps, and Greek housing, our teams bring hospitality to life through fresh food, meaningful relationships, and service people can count on. While we began serving fraternity and sorority communities more than 15 years ago, we’ve grown into a national hospitality partner supporting a wide range of dining programs across the country. No matter the setting, our purpose remains the same: to show up for the people we serve and for one another.

The Field Sous Chef covers every house on campus — stepping in for chef absences, supporting big events, and learning every kitchen inside and out. It’s the fastest way to build the relationships and readiness that lead to running your own house. This is a role for someone who wants variety now and ownership next — the promotion pathway is triggered by an opening, not a tenure clock.

Instructions

• Take daily assignments from the Area Manager or Ops Coordinator and lead service wherever needed
• Execute the house’s planned menu to standard when covering an absent Chef, managing prep, station setup, food safety, and day-of logistics
• Rotate across all houses on campus, learning each kitchen’s equipment, inventory, vendors, and service cadence
• Provide pre-service prep support at high-volume houses on coverage-light days
• Support new-house onboarding and execute special events, including philanthropies, recruitment events, and formal dinners
• Complete structured shadow time with senior chefs and participate in semi-annual development reviews
• Build a portfolio of menu concepts, costed recipes, and service plans toward independent menu ownership

Ingredients

• Culinary degree or equivalent professional kitchen experience
• 3+ years in a professional kitchen, including at least 1 year at the Sous Chef level
• Demonstrated ability to execute another chef’s menu to standard
• ServSafe certification, or ability to obtain one within 60 days of employment
• Flexibility to work across multiple kitchens on short notice, including early mornings, evenings, and occasional weekends
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to integrate quickly into established teams
• High-volume residential, hospitality, or institutional experience a plus

Chef’s Notes

• Ability to travel reliably between houses on the assigned campus
• The work environment can be loud and busy, with kitchen hazards such as hot surfaces and liquids, sharp knives, and slippery floors
• Exposure to extreme heat or cold is possible depending on the kitchen environment
• Required to stand for long periods, up to 8+ hours, as well as walk, bend, and stoop
• Must be able to lift up to 50 pounds
• Exposure to cleaning chemicals

If you’re looking for meaningful work, real ownership, and a team that believes hospitality can make a difference, we’d love to meet you.

Upper Crust Food Service provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.